Scientists have produced the most detailed 3D map of almost all buildings in the world. The map, called GlobalBuildingAtlas, combines satellite imagery and machine learning to generate 3D models for 97% of buildings on Earth. The data set, published in the open-access journal Earth System Science Data on 1 December1, covers 2.75 billion buildings, each mapped with footprints and heights at a spatial resolution of 3 metres by 3 metres. The 3D map opens new possibilities for disaster risk assessment, climate modelling and urban planning, according to study co-author Xiaoxiang Zhu, an Earth observation data scientist at the Technical University of Munich in Germany. It could also help to improve how researchers monitor United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals for cities and communities, Zhu adds. Conventionally, creating detailed 3D maps at a global scale has been difficult, say Zhu, because it usually requires either laser scanning or high'resolution stereo imagery. The team's solution was to combine deep learning with laser-scanning techniques to predict building heights. The tool was trained on reference data obtained using light detection and ranging (LiDAR) from 168 cities, mostly in Europe, North America and Oceania....

During the five years I worked as an environmental-studies professor at a progressive private college, I undertook a small, semesterly rebellion: I had students read 'Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist,' a 2011 essay by the British writer and former green radical Paul Kingsnorth. In it, Kingsnorth chronicles his disenchantment with the activism that had once been his life's work'the very kind of advocacy that had driven many of my students, that had driven me, into that classroom in the first place. The essay makes the case that mainstream environmentalism has abandoned the commitments and ideas that originally defined it. Classic texts of the 1960s and '70s, including Rachel Carson's Silent Spring and E. F. Schumacher's Small Is Beautiful, took a sort of ascetic posture as they warned about the ecological risks posed by technology, industry, and development. They asked societies and individuals to live more simply, consume less, and go'grow'more slowly. As Kingsnorth sees it, the ideological landscape began to change in the '80s and '90s, when ecologically minded people embraced the idea that global industrialization could continue at its breakneck pace and simply be made 'green' through 'sustainable development.' To Kingsnorth, 'sustainability' is not a laudable goal to strive for but rather the emergent rot in the green apple....

During this period, the country aims to achieve greater self-reliance in science and technology, develop innovation-driven industries and 'key core technologies', notes a communique released after the meeting on Thursday. The plan ' the 15th in China's history ' is expected to be released early next year. The government intends to increase its support for advanced semiconductor technologies, artificial intelligence (AI) and basic research, said Yin Hejun, the Chinese minister for science and technology, at a press conference in Beijing on Friday. Researchers say this is part of China's effort to overcome technological bottlenecks. Huang Baorong, a researcher of sustainable development policies at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, expects China will increase its science-related investments over the next five years. This could help to offset some of the impact of the US government's anticipated budget cuts to science, particularly in areas such as climate change and public health, Huang says....

In this Q&A, Mihaela Papa, the center's director of research and a principal research scientist at MIT, describes her role and her founding of the BRICS Lab, which studies how the BRICS group of major powers and emerging markets ' comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, along with new members and partners ' seeks to reform global policymaking. She also discusses the ongoing mission of CIS to tackle the world's most complex challenges in new and creative ways.Q: What is your role at CIS, and some of your key accomplishments since joining the center just over a year ago' A: I serve as director of research and principal research scientist at CIS, a role that bridges management and scholarship. I oversee grant and fellowship programs, spearhead new research initiatives, build research communities across our center's area programs and MIT schools, and mentor the next generation of scholars. My academic expertise is in international relations, and I publish on global governance and sustainable development, particularly through my new BRICS Lab. This past year, I focused on building collaborative platforms that highlight CIS' role as an interdisciplinary hub and expand its research reach. With Evan Lieberman, the director of CIS, I launched the CIS Global Research and Policy Seminar series to address current challenges in global development and governance, foster cross-disciplinary dialogue, and connect theoretical insights to policy solutions. We also convened a Climate Adaptation Workshop, which examined promising strategies for financing adaptation and advancing policy innovation. We documented the outcomes in a workshop report that outlines a broader research agenda contributing to MIT's larger climate mission....